Chin was born in Kingston, Jamaica and attended Mavisville Preparatory school. Her father, Richard Chin, is of Jamaican Chinese descent and her mother, Christine Chin, also a Jamaican national, is of English and African descent.[3] Her parents were in a band called The Carnations[4] and her older sister Tami Chynn is also a singer. Her cousin Jay Hall is a vocalist and guitarist with UK rockers Grassroutes (and previously The Royal Players), and Jay's brother Leon is a vocalist with ska-fusion act Electrik Custard.

Tessanne was introduced to music at a very early age by her parents.[5] Her mother was the trumpeter and singer in The Carnations and her father was the band's drummer. The family has a recording studio in their home in Jamaica.

Tessanne started performing when she was six years old with Cathy Levy's Little People and Teen Players Club, one of Jamaica's top performing arts schools. Most of her vocal coaching came from her mother, as well as noted vocal coach Lecie Wright. Tessanne learned firsthand about cultural diversity when she moved to England at age 12. She coped with the move by devoting a lot of time to writing songs.

Upon her return to Jamaica, Chin joined the Jamaican rock band Mile High and performed for crowds at many local venues including Jazzfest, Rockfest, and RETV Unplugged. Their style, "rock reggae," was unique and distinct. After going on tour for three years with Jimmy Cliff as a back-up singer, she decided to launch her solo career.

After Tessanne left Mile High, she began writing songs for her first album. Guitarist Rudy Valentino and drummer Paul "GrooveGalore" KasticK were her producers for her 2010 independent debut album In Between Words. Her 2006 debut single, "Hideaway" received heavy rotation on Caribbean radio and select stations in New York.[6] Both the single and its music video were very popular. The song was also featured on VP Records' Reggae Gold 2007.[7] After "Hideaway," she has released two more singles, "Messenger" and "Black Books," both available online on "In Between Words".

She has performed at several live shows, including The Air Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival 2006, Reggae Sumfest 2007 & 2012, the Deck Cafe, The Port Royal Music Festival, ABC Slim Traxx, and her very own show "Arabian Night."[8]

Tessanne has collaborated with fellow Jamaican artists Shaggy ("Never Let Go") and Protoje ("Someone Like You"), the Trinidad and Tobago soca band Kes ("Loving You") and was featured in a track by the legendary Jamaican band Third World, titled "By My Side." She appeared as a special guest of Third World at the Highline Ballroom in New York City in April 2011. "By My Side" was featured in the soundtrack of Robert Townsend's series "Diary of a Single Mom" starring Monica Calhoun, Leon, and Billy Dee Williams.

On December 10, 2013, her performance of Simon & Garfunkel's classic "Bridge over Troubled Water" for the Semifinal Round became #1 on the iTunes chart, with her becoming the first contestant to achieve the top chart position at the end of an applicable voting window that season.[11] This performance also served as her first U.S. chart appearance, charting at #64 on the Hot 100 chart, #14 on the Digital Songs chart, and #5 on Heatseekers Songs chart.[12][13] On the Canadian Hot 100, the song made its debut at #39. On December 17, 2013, her performance of Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" became #1 on the iTunes chart, with her also becoming the first contestant that season to achieve the top chart position twice.[14] The following week the cover made its debut on the Hot 100 at #51, #12 on the Digital Songs chart and #15 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Her duet with coach Adam Levine, a cover of The Beatles' "Let It Be" charted at #76 on the Hot 100 and #24 on Digital Songs.[13][15] The songs also charted at #1 and #7 respectively on the Heatseekers Songs chart. In Canada, her cover of "I Have Nothing" charted at #32 while "Let it Be" charted at #35.[16] A compilation album with studio versions of her The Voice performances was released on iTunes[17] and charted at #4 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.

During the Finale Results show, she was revealed to be the winner of Season 5 obtaining the highest amount of votes in Voice history. Jacquie Lee as runner-up and Will Champlin in third place. After her victory was announced, she debuted her first U.S. single "Tumbling Down," written by Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. She is to date so far, the only foreign born contestant to win The Voice USA.

On January 12, 2014, she headlined her first show in celebration of her victory on The Voice, dubbed "Tessanne's Homecoming." The event was held in downtown Kingston and admission was free.[21] Also performing were Shaggy, Wayne Marshall, Assassin/Agent Sasco, and fellow reggae songstress Alaine.[22] That night, she was presented a Gold Medal of the City of Kingston and a citation by Mayor Angela Brown Burke.[23]

Chin was honored at the University of the West Indies Fifth Annual Toronto Benefit Gala at the Ritz Carlton hotel on March 29, 2014 where she was given a Luminary Award alongside her long-time mentor, reggae legend Jimmy Cliff.[30] That night, Toronto philanthropists Michael Lee-Chin and Raymond Chang engaged in an impromptu bidding war to persuade Chin to sing her first song on Canadian soil. In the end, Mr. Lee-Chin topped the bidding with $40,000 and requested Chin perform three songs. Proceeds of the bidding went to scholarships for the Caribbean-based university system.[31]

Tessanne released her major label debut album, Count On My Love, under Republic Records[57][58] on July 1, 2014.[2] During the conception of the album, Tessanne collaborated with Damian Marley[59] as well as longtime mentor Shaggy;[60][61] however, these tracks did not make the album. The possibility of a collaboration with Ne-Yo was also mentioned,[59] but ultimately did not come into fruition. She expressed a desire to do some of the album's recording in Jamaica at Portland's GeeJam recording studio,[62] but ultimately recorded the album throughout various studios within the United States.

Tessanne shared on her Facebook page that she planned to release the background song which was featured in her clear scalp and hair commercial.[84][85] It was co-written by Balewa Muhammad while produced and released by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League. "Fire" is the first official single released on the newly formed Justice League Music Group.[86]

Tessanne performed at the 19th Annual Building Hope Gala Fundraiser and Silent Auction held by the Food for the Poor Organisation based in Florida on Saturday, February 1, 2014.[92] There, she performed her single "Tumbling Down" to encourage attendees to replace poor families’ dilapidated huts in Ganthier, Haiti with safe, permanent houses.[93]

Tessanne joined the Lupus Foundation of America and performed at their annual event in Washington on May 20, 2014. The concert celebrated Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa for his public service, extraordinary leadership and contributions to the advancement of science and medicine in supporting Americans with disabilities and chronic diseases, such as lupus.[94][95]

In efforts to spread awareness and to eradicate Polio. Polio Ambassador, Tessanne partnered with Rotary International on "World Polio Day" in which she made a performance at the event "World Polio Day and a live global update" held in Chicago, IL on October 24, 2014.[99]